Another journalist targeted in Karachi as violence surges

New York, April 21, 2011--An
outburst of violence took the lives of at least 20 people in a bomb blast and
targeted attacks in Karachi
on Wednesday and Thursday. The huge port city of more than 13 million people is
caught in a gangland-style turf war made worse by sectarian and political conflict, according to media reports.

In
the most recent violence, at least 15 people were killed and 40 others were
wounded in a blast at a gambling club in Karachi
on Thursday, local and international media reported. The cause of
the blast was unclear, but gangland-style turf wars are a major reason for the
unrest in the city.

On Wednesday, Naveed Kamal, a news reporter with the local
news channel Metro One TV, was in serious condition after being shot by two men
on a motorcycle. Pakistani news media said Kamal, 26, was in the intensive care
unit at Aga Khan Hospital but was likely to survive.

Two other journalists were killed in Karachi this year in similar attacks. The
first attack, in January, was clearly related to the journalist's work. The
motive for an attack on a crime reporter in April was still not clear.

"While this current surge of violence in Karachi
is daunting, the targeting of journalists in this sprawling city is clearly on
the rise," said Bob Dietz, CPJ's Asia program coordinator. "Investigators must act
decisively and bring the culprits to justice if this disturbing wave is to be
reversed.

"Unfortunately, given Karachi's
chaos and Pakistan's
history of impunity for the killers of journalists, that does not seem likely,"
Dietz said.

Kamal was shot in the evening near the city's popular zoo
and garden spot Safari Park as he was returning home from work, according to
media reports. A similar attack took the life of Geo TV reporter Wali
Khan Babar on January 13. Pakistani news media have reported that arrests
have been made in the case, though no charges have been brought yet. And on April 2, crime reporter Zaman
Ibrahim was killed when two motorcyclists following him shot him in the
head, according to Pakistani media reports.

The motive behind Ibrahim's killing is not clear. Police
told reporters investigating the shooting that they believed he had been killed
over an internal political party dispute but have made no more statements on
the case.

Soon after Wednesday's attack on Kamal, journalists rallied
in the city. The Karachi Union of Journalists called the shooting "an attack on
the journalist community." Sindh Province Information Minister Sharjeel Memon
apologized to the group for the shooting, and said he felt that the wave of
attacks on journalists was aimed at quieting them, according
to Pakistani media reports.

For journalists, Pakistan was the deadliest country
in the world in 2010, according
to CPJ data. The country also ranked 10th on CPJ's global Impunity
Index, which spotlights countries where journalists are regularly slain and
authorities fail to solve the crimes.